Here Tonight
by Kiwiflea
Summary: Andrew gets woken from sleep. Heartwarming things ensue. / Established Merluca. Could be read as a sequel to Home or Kitchen Party, if you'd like.


Andrew didn't know what woke him.

No, that wasn't exactly right. As he sleepily took stock of himself…he didn't have to use the bathroom, and Meredith hadn't stolen all the covers again. It was the slight squeak of the bedroom door that woke him. Meredith had been nagging him to WD-40 it, but he hadn't gotten around to it between cutting crusts off Ellis's sandwiches - "No, Drew, you have to cut them off top to bottom!" - and snuggling up to Meredith as she folded laundry. A quiet breathing emanating from that corner was also a pretty big sign that he and Mere were no longer alone in her bedroom. He really needed to stop thinking of it as "her bedroom."

He took a look Meredith. She was still sleeping soundly on her left side, one hand tucked under the other, both cradling her forehead. Andrew slowly slipped out of bed, his legs stretching for the area rug and the hardwood floor beneath it. Once he reached his destination, he slid his torso out of bed and tucked the covers back down around Meredith.

The bedroom door was slightly ajar, the torso of Zola visible through the gap it created. Her right hand gripped tightly the door's handle.

"Hey, Zo. Are you okay?" He asked her. She solemnly nodded her head, but he had come to know not to take what she said at face value. The little girl would always take one for the team, or in this case, her family, even if it meant sacrificing something herself.

Andrew rested his hand on her shoulder and turned her, using his other hand to peel her fingers off the door knob, something which they were white knuckling. Something was obviously wrong. Gently shutting the door behind them, he steered her down the hallway and down to the living room. The living room of the frat house, as it was still lovingly called, had always brought him comfort and he hoped it could do so for the little girl.

She was shivering. He leaned over and grabbed his college sweatshirt that he had haplessly thrown over the chair as he and Meredith undressed each other before bed. They'd both been so tired from today's surgery that nothing had happened. Andrew thumbed the silicone ring on his left hand. Was this what being old and married had turned him into? Falling asleep before they even got started?

He shook his head and refocused himself on Zola. She sat on the couch with her eyes closed, her small hands clenched into fists.

"I'm going to put my sweatshirt on you, okay? It's cold down here," he said needlessly, just thankful for something to do. Zola hadn't said anything since opening their door, which was out of character for the normally chatty eleven-year-old. To say it scared him was an understatement.

He sat down on the couch and wordlessly wrapped his arm around her. He could immediately feel Zola relax. When Zola snuggled into his side, Andrew turned and pressed a kiss onto her hairline.

It was a few minutes before she spoke.

"It was about my dad." She said without any context.

"You had a nightmare?"

"Yeah." The confession slowly poured out of her. "He came to my graduation, but he couldn't talk, and he disappeared before the ceremony. I tried to look for him, but…" She stopped, burying her face in Andrew's shoulder.

"You don't have to tell me. It's okay for us to just sit for a while." He could feel her shake her head.

Zola fiddled with the hem of Andrew's sweatshirt. Both the arms and the body of the sweatshirt were huge on the tween.

"I found him and he was dead. He was all bloody, and Ellis tried, but she couldn't save him." She wiped her eyes with the sleeves.

"Aw, Zo." He reached for the locket that the little girl wore around her neck. He grasped it between his thumb and forefinger. "He may not be here in person, but he's always right here with you. I know he's so excited to see you graduate next week. He's so proud of you. And so are your mom and I."

Zola sniffed, rubbing her nose with one sleeve. Andrew had an errant thought that they were definitely going to have laundry tomorrow.

"Thanks, Andrew."

"Anytime, Zo," He said, squeezing her shoulder. "You ready to go back to bed? I'll put the brown noise on for you."

"Yeah, okay." The pair rose and Andrew followed Zola back to her room. He leaned on the door frame and mirrored her previous posture as she climbed back into bed, rolling back and forth to get herself situated. Sleep quickly reclaimed her.

"Goodnight, sweetheart," Andrew whispered.

He crossed the hall and quietly slipped back into the master bedroom. Meredith had sprawled across the bed, taking over what space he had given up. She stirred slightly as he crawled back under the comforter.

"Whaaa?" Meredith sleepily asked, looking over her shoulder at him. Andrew scooted up behind Meredith and wrapped his arm around her. She unconsciously intertwined their fingers.

"Zola had a nightmare again."

"'S the sec-ind time this," huge yawn, "week…" Meredith said, her voice trailing off into sleep.

"She's okay now. We talked about it."

"You're...the...best..." He could tell she was nodding back off.

"No, you are."

Besides being with Meredith, the Grey-Shepherd family was the best thing that ever happened to him. Andrew didn't know how he had gotten so lucky, but his last thought as he fell back asleep himself was that he wasn't going to take it for granted.


End file.
